‘Not yet strong’: Canada adds surprise 75,000 jobs in July but recovery still ongoingBy Canadian Press on August 7, 2026. Signage marks the Statistics Canada offices in Ottawa on July 21, 2010. Statistics Canada said on Friday the unemployment rate fell to its lowest level in two years to 6.4 per cent. Statistics Canada said the country is now up 181,000 jobs since April, and 196,000 from a year ago. Average hourly wages were up 2.8 per cent in July year-over-year, though it decelerated from 3.3 per cent growth in June.